The United Arab Emirates (UAE)’ total agricultural production increased by 70.5 percent in the year 2000 and its total production value increased by 34.5 percent reaching 7.4 billion Emirati dinars (two billion dollars) in 2000, reported WAM.

As part of a planned strategy to diversify the economy, the UAE government increased the number of farms in the country by 25.4 percent from 28,369 in 1999 to 35,584 in 2000 with the cultivated area increasing by 14.7 percent reaching 2.6 million dunams in 2000, confirmed Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries statistics.

Most of the planted area is in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, with a 58.2 percent holding of UAE farms and 86 per cent of the overall cultivated land. The Emirates of Ras Al-Khaimah, Fujairah and Sharjah rank next with minor differences in their numbers.

Of the country's overall cultivated land, 70.3 percent is planted with palm trees, 15.7 percent with vegetables, 6.4 percent with crops, and one percent with fruit with greenhouses comprising 6.5 percent of the cultivated land.

The UAE government announced earlier this month that the country attained self-sufficiency in date palm production and fish farming. The country also reached an output capacity high enough to support 83 percent of its vegetable consumption, 80 percent of its milk consumption and 25 percent of its meat and poultry consumption. — (menareport.com)